Within Reach
by Dying-Revenge
Summary: Yang Xiao Long was stubborn, and hot-headed. Instead of going around, she would always find her way through a roadblock. After the loss of her arm, Yang found a roadblock she could neither break or pass. But with the support of friends and family, she was just about to open up her path again. But fate tends to be cruel, as another tragic event takes away more than just her arm.
1. Chapter 1

When something is ripped away from you, feeling the release of pressure from your grip fills you with guilt. If something is ripped from you, that means you let it go.

One breeze nipped the air, infecting it with the cold. The winter crept itself in, from a small bite to the wind. The open space in the window began to slowly close over time, shutting out the infected air. With nothing to do but watch the window get taken by frost, Yang began to look at the ceiling. The soft umber color of the wood was bland, and became a sore to her eyes.

Her mind and body began to taunt her. She would look down at her legs, and see two. She would look in the mirror, and see two lavender eyes. Every deep breath sent a pulse to her wound, reminding her nothing was there. Yang would see the trees without leaves, and would see how the cold killed anything in sight out from her window. She compared herself to the winter, except her cold storm was nuclear. There would be nothing to flourish, once she was covered in snow.

Her Scroll used to ring, quite a lot. Eight times out ten, it was Ruby. The other two were her father, summoning her for whatever meal he served next. But ten times out of ten, she let it ring. Eventually, she turned off the volume. And so, the scroll started to vibrate less and less.

Snow pelted her home, softly burying it. The storm was bitter, freezing the house from the inside out. Yang didn't leave her room often, but she needed the warmth of the fireplace. Shrouded in a warm blanket, Yang observed the fire, absorbing its warmth. She enjoyed the occasional pop of burning wood. As the time passed and the wood burned to ash, Yang's father came to her for some company.

"So Yang, how's it going? Good?" With no need to use her voice, Yang simply nodded. With a deep sigh, he sat down next to his depressed daughter.

"Yang, listen. I don't know what it's like, to go through what you did. But you can't mope around the house all day, you still have the ability to do more than just feel sorry for yourself." Yang shrugged her shoulders, becoming more enveloped in her shroud.

"Hunter's don't give up the first time something happens to them. A hunter isn't a hunter without the scars or wounds to prove it." He could give her all of the phrases and sayings he wanted, but Yang wasn't prepared to consider anyone's words. Her father knew words were a lost cause, but he didn't know any other way to simply hear his daughter's voice. Until now.

"Well, if you don't feel like talking to me, maybe this will help." From behind his back, Taiyang brought out one of Yang's old gauntlets. One half of Ember Celica.

"I didn't want it getting rusty on you, so I have kept it in shape for when you needed it next." Yang took the gauntlet, baffled by its new glow.

"Oh, and can't forget these." From what appeared to be nowhere, he showed Yang two more gauntlets, making three total. Without observing them thoroughly, Yang shot her father a look.

"Three?"

"Huh, a few months of silence and all I get is a single word." He continued to chuckle, without answering Yang's simple question.

"Dad, I know you want me back out there, but I don't think I need a bunch of spares if I do."

"They ain't spares kiddo." He offered them to her. Yang put the other down, and took one of them for more thorough examination.

"I mean, they do look different."

"That's because they are. They aren't supposed to go on your wrist." Taking her father's strong hint, Yang excitedly looked down at her ankles. Before she could try it on, Taiyang snatched it out of her hand.

"You only get to try them out, if you go outside and warm-up with me first."

"Dad, come on."

"And say something funny too, I've been dying for your sense of humor." She was slightly disgusted at her father's bribe, but at the same time amused. She could feel a grin stretch her cheek, shaking off the rust.

"It ain't gonna be my sense of humor that kills you if you don't let me try those out."

"That a girl."

Out in the snow, Taiyang prepared a couple makeshifts targets out of wet wood and bottles. Lining in them in a large row, he instructed Yang to take them out anyway and any order she wanted.

"But I am gonna time you though. If this were a real fight, with these numbers against you, you gotta be quick, not strong. And when you are done, we set them back up, and do over. Keep doing it until we have reached a satisfactory time. Got it?" With just a simple nod, Yang stood in her ready position.

"Three…two…one…go!"

Yang fired the gauntlets at her ankles, intending to propel her faster towards her first target. But her legs had barely had to support her own body weight recently, never mind the force from almost two shotgun blasts. Her knees buckled, and she began to tumble through the air. Taiyang had no choice but to wince and look away. But he could hear Yang's panic turn to a confident grunt, and as he looked back up, he could see Yang turn her awkward momentum into a slick roll, finally raising her leg towards the middle target. She powered her up roundhouse kick with another blast of the gauntlet, which was strong enough to splinter the soggy bark. With an almost complete spin, she slammed her foot down back into the snow, propelling herself again towards the rest of the targets.

In a brief dance of snow and splinters, no targets remained standing. Without a moment to catch her breath, Yang called to her father.

"And?"

"Thirty six seconds."

"So…..good?" Taiyang approached Yang, seeing as how her body was still adjusting to being put back into use.

"Well…just not good enough."

"Ah, come on Dad. It's my first run."

"Yang, you can't use that as an excuse. You could have been out there hunting alongside your sister a long time ago, but instead you chose to sulk."

"But Dad I…"

"It's the life of a hunter sweetheart. Seeing as how you can finally stand on your two feet, I'm not gonna cater you anymore. You built up a lot of rust, and someone your age shouldn't even be close to rusty."

Yang wanted to defend herself, but she knew any words she used would just further her denial.

"What, mad I'm gonna be hard on you from now on?"

"You wouldn't be my father unless you did." He tried his best to be stern, but seeing his daughter's confidence back put a grin on his face. After patting her head, he spoke softly to her.

"You're damn right kiddo. Now I'm gonna go out and do a couple things, can I trust you to keep practicing until I get back? No slacking off?"

"Absolutely."

"Awesome. Love you sweetheart." With a quick hug to his daughter, Taiyang vanished into the storm. And now, with nothing but the wind keeping her company, Yang prepared more targets. It was tedious work with one arm, but the excitement of being able to smash them all again was enough to keep Yang motivated.

Once they were all prepared, Yang took time to plan out a strategy. She tried analyzing her past attempt, figuring out what she did wrong and how to improve it. Despite some awkwardness from the momentum at her ankles, her attacks felt natural and effective.

"So what was the problem? What wasn't good enough? My kicks? Punches? Was I too slow?" Then an idea clicked in Yang's head.

"Speaking of slow I need a timer. Duh." She took one quick adventure back into her household to retrieve her scroll. She noticed on the screen the countless missed calls and unanswered messages from Ruby.

"Sorry Ruby. I actually have a reason to ignore you right now."

The wind picked up, filling the air with white powder. The horizon of her vision was very short, full of nothing but the bright gray blur. Yang (hoped she) remembered the direction of the targets and moved towards them. As she walked, she looked down at her scroll preparing the timer. When the timer was set to thirty six seconds, she looked back up. Sitting on top of the center target, was a figure. The wind concealed their identity.

"Hello? Who's there?" Yang called out. She saw no movement from the figure. She took a few more steps.

"Who are you? I'm prepared to kick your ass if you don't respond!" Just like a statue, the figure remained still. Unmoved by the gusts of wind.

"Hey! One last time! Who…are you?" With one more series of steps, the blurred lines of the figure began to solidify and take shape. Elegant black hair flowed like magic in the wind, with almost no effect from the chaotic breath of the storm. A sleek feminine body, perched with grace on top of the dummy. Not until the figure turned towards Yang, did she realize who it was. And all it took was the golden eyes that pierced through the snow to reveal her identity.

"Blake?"

 **Author's Note**

 **Welcome everyone to my second fan-fiction based on the RoosterTeeth production RWBY. As always, any feedback or criticisms you may have are highly welcome and wanted. I want to write the best stories for you guys, and it is your feedback that helps me improve.**

 **Also, it is worth mentioning, I just started writing this story as the new Vol. 4 of RWBY just began. I already have a set idea and timeline for how this story will go, and so I am going to do my best to avoid Vol. 4. I do not want the new volume influencing this story, as I pretty much planned it out way before Vol. 4 even came out. So if at any point, information or details in this fan-fiction rival or disagrees with canon information from Vol. 4, you know the reason why.**

 **I hope you all enjoy.**


	2. Chapter 2

Golden eyes glared at Yang, feeling as if they were observing every ounce of her being. Seeing her friend return attacked Yang with a large mixture of emotions. Some of these emotions made Yang want to run towards Blake and hug her, while others made Yang want to rip her ears off.

"Blake, what are you doing here?"

"Why else? I came to see you." She jumped from the dummy, landing by Yang's feet.

"It's been a while, and I just wanted to see how-" Yang's arm gripped Blake's shoulder fast and hard. The sudden gesture shocked Blake, ending her sentence abruptly. Blake could hear Yang's finger tighten on her collar bone, causing a small amount of pain.

Blake's natural fighting instinct wanted her to retaliate, but she knew any unnecessary self-defense would make everything worse. She waited to see what Yang would do. After struggling to find the right word to say, Yang decided to turn her grip into a soft hug around Blake's back.

"I've missed you." Blake raised her arms behind Yang, gripping her back.

"I've missed you too."

"So I see your Dad brought you back into the game."

"Well, this is the only attempt of his that might work. I still gotta practice with these a lot more."

"Well don't let me stop you. Go right ahead." Blake took Yang's scroll, offering to be the time keeper. Yang got into her ready position, waiting for the signal.

"Three…two…one…go!"

Yang blasted the gauntlets at her ankles again, this time prepared and comfortable with their force. Her initial blast was used to gain speed, tackling the cold air like it was barely there. When she felt her momentum begin to fade away, she used another burst to propel herself further. But before her momentum could fade again, she brought her knees to the front of her body, and with one large burst at her feet, rocketed into the air. She tilted her body almost parallel to the ground below her, and stretched back her arm. As she fell back down to the earth, her body began to tilt further and further down, bringing her to a perpendicular angle. She could see the row of targets down at the ground, and she predicted where she would land. Seeing the white canvas become larger in her vision was helping her time the impact as well. Within a few seconds, she was at the right place and time for her first attack.

Using a large blast on her wrist, she punched the ground as she made contact with the thick layer of snow. The punch sent a shockwave, rippling the snow into waves, which then almost erupted the few targets near the point of impact. She could feel her arm buckle and writhe in pain, but she didn't want to waste such a good start. With one leap off of her knees, she boosted her leg into a whirlwind kick, knocking off the heads off of one side of remaining targets. And with another quick bounce from her gauntlets, she angled her body into a sidekick, knocking down the other side of targets.

With heavy gasps of air, and winces of pain from her arm, she yelled back to Blake.

"And?" Through the wind, she could hear Blake respond

"Thirty one seconds!"

Walking back towards each other, Blake could tell by Yang's posture she was in pain.

"Ah come on, Yang. Already?"

"Ah, it's nothing." Yang waved her arm, gesturing she was able to shrug it off. But even the gesture was enough to make Yang moan in pain.

"Well you can't practice like this, that's for sure. Let's get inside."

"Yeah, you're probably right. Imagine how worthless I'd be without both arms."

"Yang, you could be a potato and still find some worth."

"The world's only Potato huntress. I might take you up on that."

With a small exchange of chuckles, the two went back inside the house.

"So where's Ruby?"

"Well, in all honesty, I have no idea. I haven't been the most loyal sister."

"Yeah, I hear you haven't done much since…you know."

"My arm got cut off? Blake, I am giving you full permission to be able to talk about it. I think it's safe to say I am over it."

"Well that's one step. Glad to hear it Yang."

Blake started to take off her heavy coat, which reminded Yang to do so as well. She learned many tricks to dress and undress herself, but not being to lift her arm has put a damper on things. Blake immediately noticed Yang struggling.

"Yang? Need some help with that?"

"No, no. I got it." She tried wiggling her shoulder, her elbow, and every possible joint on her arm. But either it didn't help remove the sleeve, or it just caused more pain. She may have been missing a limb, but Yang still hated having to rely on others, especially as mundane as taking off a coat. But she knew when she had been beat.

"Um…actually…" With a giggle, Blake gently pulled the coat off of Yang's shoulders. She then maneuvered it all the way down Yang's arm for her, so she didn't have to move it.

"Thanks Blake. God, this is embarrassing."

"What are friends for? Oh, your shirt is soaked Yang!"

"Wha- really?" Yang looked down, noticing the giant gray blob on her shirt.

"Huh, must have melted some snow or something while practicing."

"Well why don't you grab a change of clothes before you catch a cold? I'll follow you to your room."

"Follow? Um…why?"

"Because considering you couldn't get a jacket off, I doubt you could change your shirt."

"I…uh…um…" Yang's flustering brought a smile to Blake's face.

"Come on, we are both girls here. Besides, it's not like we didn't share a dorm room." Yang still wasn't sure of a proper response. Partly due to the fact that she wasn't even sure _why_ she was flustered in the first place.

"Yang, are you blushing, or are you just cold?"

"Room. This way. Uh huh. This way."

Yang turned around towards her bedroom. She was having trouble deciphering Blake's odd behavior. It seemed too….flirty for Blake. But Blake was right on Yang's tail, so Yang kept walking, not having enough time to think to herself.

In her bedroom, Yang picked out a simple t-shirt to change into.

"Well I know it's still kind of uncomfortable for you, so do you wanna try by yourself?" Yang nodded, happy for the chance to not go through an awkward moment. She was ready to try, but she noticed Blake wasn't turning the other way. But now it was already awkward, because Yang couldn't decide if she should acknowledge Blake's stare or not. But she also knew if she stood there deciding, it would be awkward nonetheless. So, she bit the bullet and tried herself.

She grabbed the bottom of her shirt, and began pulling it up. She got it up to just about her abdomen, but then the sharp pain stung her arm. She then tried bending her elbow to get a different grip, but that caused even more pain.

"God, I hope I didn't break something." She whispered underneath her breath.

"Nah, I doubt you did."

"What?"

"Remember the ears Yang? I heard you whisper."

"Oh. Yeah. Right."

"Yang, don't hurt yourself more. I'll help you."

Blake grabbed the left and right side of Yang's shirt, and began pulling it up from the back. She pulled the shirt over Yang's head and the back down the front. She was able to slide off the shirt without Yang having to move her arm. Yang wanted to thank her, but the sudden cold hitting her skin and the complete embarrassment felt like it was sowing Yang's mouth shut.

"Here um…sit down on the bed, that will be easier to get the shirt on."

Yang was screaming in her head. 'First you take my shirt off, and now you want me to sit down on my bed? What, seeing my cold and weak in just a bra isn't good enough for you? You gotta go in for the kill?' She fully understood Blake had no foul intentions, despite how uncomfortable she felt. Her inner panicking was simply humor to calm herself down.

She sat at the edge of her bed, while Blake climbed behind her. Blake reached all the way around Yang, grabbing the shirt in her lap. Yang couldn't help but notice Blake's face right besides hers. In such a tender moment, Yang began noticing each other's breathing, especially Blake's. She could see Blake focused on the simple task, taking long but subtle breaths only through her nose. She could feel Blake's skin on her arm, guiding it through the short sleeve. Her grip was so nimble and tender, Yang didn't feel any pain in her arm at all while Blake was handling it. Blake pulled the shirt over Yang's head, and pull it back down. Yang got small chills, feeling Blake's fingers grace the swell of her back.

A simple task that lasted a minute for some reason felt like an hour long experience to her.

"Alright, all set to go Yang."

"Blake, thanks."

"No problem, anything else?"

"Yeah, actually."

"Sure. What is it?"

Yang turned around to face her friend.

"I need to ask you something."


	3. Chapter 3

"All this time, and you pop out of nowhere. And it's barely even to say hello. You show up in the snow, and within the next few minutes you are stripping me and changing me like a child, something I don't even let my father help me with. So I'm gonna give you one chance Blake. To explain everything."

"Yang, all I wanted was to-"

"From the beginning. From the moment I woke up without my arm and you nowhere to be seen or heard, all the way until now."

"Yang, isn't that a little-"

"And if you can't give me an answer, there is the door. Walk right the fuck out."

Blake realized she wasn't as comfortable with Yang's anger as she thought she was. Throughout the rage and the tantrums, none of them were ever directed at her. Blake was scared to speak, terrified of saying the wrong words. She had trouble deciding if she should try telling Yang what she wanted to hear, or the truth.

"Yang, that night…"

"If I detect the slightest bit of bullshit out of your mouth, I'll throw you out myself."

"Yang, enough. I'll talk."

Even though she knew she had a long story ahead of her, she didn't bother offering Yang a seat. She knew it would just get more foul language thrown at her.

"Yang, I left that night because…I didn't want Adam hurting you more. He was after me that whole time, you had nothing to do with it. It's….it's my fault you don't have your arm. I left because I couldn't handle the guilt anymore."

"Is that all this is going to be? A sob story?"

"Yang, I…"

"I save your life, and some guy deforms me in the process. What thanks do you give me? No phone calls, no letters, no nothing! But you expect me to forget all that when you show up out of nowhere and try to-"

"I was trying to protect you!"

Blake's sudden outburst shushed Yang.

"I couldn't protect you then from Adam, what makes you think I could the next time? He hasn't stopped tracking me, and I knew if I even got close to you, he would find you and use you to get to me! Yang, he wouldn't be afraid to do worse things to you just for the hell of it! Imagine what he would do with a motive like the one he has now!"

"Protect me? Leaving me alone was protecting me?"

"Yes Yang, please understand that. Do you have any idea how much it hurt…not being able to see you?"

Blake's words began to stutter, as her tears weighed down her face. Two rugged streams of frozen sorrow, stinging her skin.

"I couldn't see you, hear you, or feel you. All for your safety. I wanted to Yang…believe me when I tell you I wanted to."

She took a moment to clear her face with her wrists. But her sobs stole her breath, causing her body to jerk every time she tried to breath.

"I have made so many friends…but you have been the best of friends to me Yang. And when it was my fault you lost your arm, I felt responsible. Which is why I-"

"But why now?"

"Wh-what?"

"You said Adam is still after you. So what makes you think it is safe to come finally see me?"

"I…heard him and the white fang are moving on to another project. So I can only hope he is forgetting about me for the time being. Even if it is just a rumor, I didn't want to waste this one opportunity to come see you Yang. I couldn't take it anymore."

"So let me get this straight. You never came back, out of fear Adam would find me again?"

She had no oxygen to spare, so Blake simply nodded her head.

"And you finally came back, because you hope is Adam isn't searching for you anymore?"

Blake nodded her head one more time, except this time with reluctance. She knew visiting Yang was a humongous risk, and she knew Yang would be upset. Yang let out an audible sigh, and Blake prepared for impact.

A few seconds went by, but there were no words or fists. Blake had her eyes closed, terrified of Yang's reaction. She could hear her feet hit the ground with every step, getting louder and louder as she got closer. Blake could sense Yang at point blank range, it was anytime now. She knew she deserved anything she got, so she didn't try to resist. But instead, she felt Yang rub her head.

"I'm glad you took that risk Blake."

Blake opened her eyes, to see Yang's glowing smile shining towards her. Blake couldn't help herself, she lunged towards Yang with open arms, wrapping herself as tightly as she could around Yang.

"Blake?"

"Yeah?"

"How about we pretend there are no Grimm, no Adam, no White Fang, no school, and no nothing to bother us and just hang out for a little bit?"

With a laugh, Blake agreed.

"I would love to."

Up until nightfall, Yang and Blake watched TV while reminiscing about their lives. They exchanged happy stories from when they were children, and awkward stories from when they were teenagers. They exhausted every possible 'What is your favorite' question. They joked and mocked every commercial they saw. For a few hours, they weren't huntresses. They were just friends.

 _ **AUTHOR'S NOTE:**_

 **Hey Guys. I apologize for the short chapter, but looks like I have some explaining to do. When I started this story, I knew about what direction I wanted it to go. That direction hasn't changed, but my motivation towards writing it has. Writing these first few chapters have really felt like more of a grind to get them done, than rather write a great story. Usually I like to feel pretty pumped to get more chapters done on a project of mine, but with this story whenever I had free time to write more, I kept pushing it back. And after really forcing this chapter out, I think I know why. Simply put, this story has sort of become luke-warm to me. I have so many ideas, all of which are overshadowing this one. The more and more I try to motivate myself to write this, the less I feel impacted by it. And if that is how I feel about my own story, I shouldn't be writing it. It wastes time and effort on what could be a story I am excited and anxious about, and also ruins the value and potential this story could have. So I guess long story short, I am putting this story on hold. Whether it be temporary or permanent, I am not too sure yet. I just wanted to keep anyone reading this story updated (since a lot of people tend to give up on projects without notice, and I know first-hand how aggravating that could be).**

 **Again, my apologies. But with that said, hopefully this means I can get to work on another story that will keep me motivated and you entertained. Cheers.**


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